Su Chiming, Su Huaigu, Su Huaiyue, Lin Xia, Su Yaoyu, Su Yaoxue, Kong Fang, and the others gathered at the military airport at the foot of Yuhaung Mountain. They watched Yaoguang as he prepared to depart, yet no one spoke to ask him to stay.

They knew that Yaoguang had a brighter future only if he went to Cangwu. That world was the stage where his talent could truly shine. Moreover, the Su family would only be truly qualified to become the overlords of this world after Yaoguang established a firm foothold in Cangwu and became a great cultivator. Therefore, whether for public interest or private reasons, they could not hinder him.

"Take care on your journey," Su Chiming said solemnly. "Rest assured. Thanks to all the effort and investment you've put into it, the power possessed by our Su family is no longer what it once was. I will watch over the situation here and ensure no accidents occur. You do not need to worry when you arrive in the Great Cangwu World."

"I know." Yaoguang nodded slightly.

Su Yaoyu stepped forward, trying her best to maintain a smile. "Yaoguang, no matter what, this is your home. If you get tired out there, just come back. At worst, we will destroy the Star Gate and cease all contact with the outside world to live our own lives."

Yaoguang looked at her. After more than a year, she was still so naive. She was a hopeless case. However, he did not say much and simply nodded.

Immediately after, he turned his gaze toward Su Yaoxue, who was dressed in a tight-fitting suit that outlined her slender figure. Su Yaoxue seemed to know what Yaoguang wanted to say and nodded to him. Seeing this, Yaoguang realized there was no need to waste words. Among the many people in the Su family, Su Yaoxue was the only one whom he felt was relatively reliable, even if her thinking leaned slightly toward paranoid delusions of persecution. But that was not necessarily a bad thing; being prepared prevented trouble.

He swept his gaze over Su Yaoshuang and Su Yaoqin once more. Over the past year, their attitudes toward him had changed considerably, shifting from awe and fear to respect.

Retracting his gaze from them, he looked at Kong Fang. "I am leaving. Keep an eye on things here. Once the situation settles over there, I will bring you all across."

Kong Fang was very tempted, but in the end, he sighed. "Forget it. I will guard my own little patch of land here. It is quite good being one of the top ten experts in the world." He looked at Kong Xuan, who followed behind Yaoguang. "He can see Cangwu on my behalf." 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Yaoguang did not force him. There was no point in long goodbyes. He simply waved his hand. "I'm leaving."

Under everyone’s watchful eyes, he walked toward the transport vehicle parked outside. They watched his departure with blessings, expectations, and longing in their hearts. It was foreseeable that a brand-new chapter awaited him. They were eager to know what kind of scenery his talent would create on the grander stage of Cangwu.

***

At the Star Gate, a large crowd had already gathered. Over a hundred people, including members of the Snowdragon Empire, Lihuo, and the World-Saving Society, were present.

Given this rare opportunity, every eligible martial paragon hoped to try their luck in Cangwu. Even though they knew that even someone as strong as a martial paragon would be no different from an ordinary person there, unless they could achieve psyche refinement and work in the energy sector, they still came. Their noble status and positions in this world would vanish, to say nothing of attaining longevity or witnessing a wider world. But knowing it was one thing; experiencing it was another. They were unwilling to give up without trying.

When they saw Yaoguang arrive, everyone stepped forward simultaneously to greet him.

"Sacred Lord Yaoguang."

"Welcome, Sacred Lord."

Yaoguang nodded to them. However, he keenly sensed that the gaze of some people seemed... a bit defiant. Clearly, they felt that on a broader stage like Cangwu, their future would also be limitless. They imagined joining the Nine Cauldrons Sect, becoming great cultivators, and ruling over various worlds, standing at the pinnacle of life. Yaoguang did not bother to call them out.

"The Star Gate's calibration has entered the final step. It will open soon," Xie Yushu said as he stepped forward.

Yaoguang nodded and glanced at Xie Yi'er behind him, feeling somewhat surprised. "Is she also going?"

"Outsiders under the age of thirty-five who have reached the Sixth Heavenly Realm in body refinement, qi refinement, or psyche refinement are eligible for the Nine Cauldrons Sect's assessment. I plan to give it a try," Xie Yi'er said with a bow.

Yaoguang understood. Although Xie Yi'er’s talent was not the absolute best among the younger generation of the imperial family, she was still among the top; otherwise, she would not have secured the title of eldest princess. She was thirty-two this year, and under Xie Yushu’s guidance over the past year, she had become a psychic-will martial paragon. If she could master the Flawless True Body within the next three years, she would indeed be qualified to become a disciple of the Nine Cauldrons Sect.

"Sacred Lord Yaoguang, do you intend to participate in the disciple assessment?" Xie Yushu asked with a smile. "With your talent and Seventh-Heavenly-Realm body refinement strength, you might obtain the title of a formal disciple directly without an assessment. After settling in for a while, you could even compete to become a core disciple."

"We will see," Yaoguang said.

Seeing this, Xie Yushu tactfully dropped the subject.

***

One day later, the Star Gate completed its opening. Radiant light continuously spilled out from the hundred-meter-high Star Gate. Surrounded by Zong Yan, Xie Yushu, Xie Yi'er, Kong Xuan, and several others, Yaoguang stepped into the Star Gate, and the others followed. Nobody showed any hesitation.

Upon entering, the surrounding environment was entirely replaced by rapidly streaking streams of light. Yaoguang felt weightless. It was as if he had instantaneously arrived in outer space; his senses became muddled and blurred. This sensation of having no sky above and no ground below was very disorienting.

This state lasted for quite some time. After a full ten-odd minutes, Yaoguang felt gravity returning. In the next moment, the rapidly dispersing light solidified, and a square that showed the marks of time appeared before everyone.

Many mechanical guards stood around the perimeter of the plaza. Further away, over a dozen towers rose, each over a hundred meters high. These towers emitted powerful energy fluctuations; merely sensing them filled one with a sense of trepidation. It felt as though the energy contained within could easily erase everyone present.

In front of them, a projection formed by virtual imaging technology appeared, condensing into the figure of a man in his forties. Zong Yan quickly stepped forward and produced an electronic device that resembled a wristband.

"So you are School Master Zong's people," the man said, glancing at them with a smile. "You may go, but we still have to go through the necessary inspections."

"Of course. I will take them to the Fiend Detection Platform right away," Zong Yan said, quickly leading the group toward a high platform about ten meters in diameter nearby.

A faint blue light began to flicker atop the towers. Zong Yan’s gaze immediately fell upon Yaoguang. He was not the only one; Xie Yushu and the others did the same. Seeing this, Yaoguang did not hesitate and stepped onto the high platform while keeping his composure.

Below, the blue light remained unchanged. This scene instantly made Zong Yan feel as if a heavy burden had been lifted. Many of the martial paragons who understood what this implied gasped.

Xie Yushu’s eyes were filled with excitement. He turned his gaze toward Xie Yi'er, who stood beside him. "A twenty-year-old heavenly being! Even if you successfully enroll in the Nine Cauldrons Sect, it might not compare to such an opportunity! Won't you reconsider? Becoming the maid of someone with such high hopes of entering the realm of a great cultivator would never disgrace your status."

"I..." Xie Yi'er bit her lip. "I still want to try for the Nine Cauldrons Sect."

Seeing this, Xie Yushu sighed and decided not to say anything more. After all, he had tried to persuade her more than once during this period.

"Good! Good! Good!" Zong Yan looked at Yaoguang as he safely stepped down from the Fiend Detection Platform and could not help but repeat the word three times.

Once the core members had finished the formalities, he immediately said, "President Ji is already waiting for us outside. I will take you to the Hundred-Refinement School first."

Yaoguang nodded. Taking Kong Xuan and the others, he bid farewell to Xie Yushu and his group before leaving the area.

Only after they had moved some distance away did Yaoguang realize that this place was not as desolate as he had imagined; instead, the outside was rather bustling. Although there were not many buildings nearby, many hovering cars were parked there. Yes, hovering cars.

"This..." Yaoguang was surprised.

"Under the influence of the Lunar Fiend Empire’s technology, the transformation began two hundred years ago. The Crimson Star and Snowdragon Empires spread technology precisely because they were influenced by this side. Of course, due to delays and other factors, the technological level of Cangwu is at least fifty years ahead of our Artifact-Nurturing World," Zong Yan introduced with a smile.

Even though Yaoguang had long been mentally prepared, he still felt a strange sensation at this moment.

"Over here!" Yaoguang heard someone shouting next to a hovering car. It was Ji Pingtian.

Zong Yan led Yaoguang and the others to the vehicle, and they climbed inside.

"Let’s go. I will first take you to see my twelfth granduncle, the sect leader of the Hundred-Refinement Sect," Zong Yan said with a smile.

Yaoguang glanced at Ji Pingtian, who was driving, and asked with some surprise, "You didn't go to the Nine Cauldrons Sect?"

After all, the people from the World-Saving Society had been obsessively dreaming of becoming a part of the Artifact Sect. Even though the Artifact Sect was gone, joining the Nine Cauldrons Sect should have been of the same nature.

"I wasn't qualified to join them," Ji Pingtian said with a bitter smile. "The Nine Cauldrons Sect does not recruit disciples over the age of thirty-five, not even registered disciples. Unless we can become heavenly beings and apply for a position as an outer sect officer, we simply cannot enter the Nine Cauldrons Sect."

"Thirty-five years old..." Yaoguang muttered.

The structure of the human body would generally stop growing around the age of twenty. It maintained its peak between the ages of twenty and thirty, and began to gradually decline after thirty. If one had not reached the Ninth Heavenly Realm by the age of fifty, then there was no hope for them to complete Foundation Building. In fact, if one had not achieved Foundation Building by sixty, they were basically unqualified to become a great cultivator for the rest of their life. This was a structural limitation of the human species. Therefore, the Nine Cauldrons Sect restricted academy recruitment to age twenty-two and disciple recruitment to age thirty-five.

The hovering vehicle was very fast, with an estimated speed of over two hundred kilometers per hour. A massive city appeared in Yaoguang's field of vision in less than half an hour.

However, what met his eyes was not some immortal blessed land, but rather rows of skyscrapers rising from the ground. Many of these buildings were filled with neon lights. Virtual projections, electronic screens, and banners tied to balloons filled the urban space.

Looking at this scene, Yaoguang completely abandoned his fantasies. What happened to the promised world of immortal cultivation? Shouldn't immortal cultivation be characterized by an antique style of mountain peaks and pavilions shrouded in immortal qi? What is with this modern technological style hitting me in the face? What does this make people like us? Immortal cultivators in a modern world?